Multiple contact assembly



' Dec. 3111968 J. E. TAYLOR, JR 9,

. MULTIPLE CONTACT ASSEMBLY Filed Jan. 12, 1966 7 Sheet of 2 INVENT OR RJ/M/ 520mm; e.

' ATTORNEYS Dec. 31, 1968 J. E. TAYLOR, JR 3,419,842

MULTIPLE CONTACT ASSEMBLY Filed Jan. 12, 1966 Sheet of;

(Cg s E Q\ i i T g k K I Q Q v INVENTOR JZ/l/V .ETJJvzaq die BY 2 g IATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,419,842 MULTIPLE CONTACT ASSEMBLY JohnE. Taylor, In, 413 Pine Ave., Waynesboro, Va. 22980 Filed Jan. 12, 1966,Ser. No. 520,104 Claims. (Cl. 339-18) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Amultiple contact assembly for bringing contacts on a fixed assemblypanel into engagement with contacts on a movable assembly panel. The twopanels are first positioned with respect to one another by a hangerarrangement on one of the panels. In this position the movable panel isoperatively related to a cam arrangement which when actuated initiallyIcauses vertical and horizontal displacement of the contacts of themovable panel while engaging the fixed panels contacts, followed by alimited reverse vertical and horizontal displacement thereof. Thisaction produces double wiping of the contacts to achieve positiveelectrical connections.

The present invention relates to a multiple contact assembly and, moreparticularly, to a structural arrangement for insuring good electricalconnections between the tips of patchcords and the multiple contacts.

It is known to provide a fixed panel member having a number of contactsassociated therewith, the contacts being joined to electrical circuitryas desired. In order to interconnect various circuitry, patchcords areselectively connected to appropriate contacts to complete electricalpaths between the circuit elements. There has been developed anarrangement for simultaneously interconmeeting a number of circuits byproviding a movable panel member having apertures therein correspondingin position to the respective locations of the contacts in the fixedpanel member. Patchcords are selectively inserted in the apertures suchthat their tips project towards the fixed contacts. The movable panel isthen moved towards the fixed panel whereby the patchcord tips engagetheir respective contacts to complete the electrical paths.

Known multiple contact assemblies suffer the deficiency of havingimperfect electrical connections between the patchcord tips and theirassociated contacts due to the presence of foreign particles and lack ofpositive contact between the cord tips and the contact elements. Thisresults in unreliable circuit operation which is extremely difiicult totrace.

The present invention overcomes the foregoing deflciency by providing animproved structure for assuring positive electrical connections.

An additional object of the invention is to provide a multiple contactassembly which is less sensitive to the effects of shock and vibrationwhich tend to open the individual electrical contacts and also separatethe fixed and movable panel members.

Further objects and the entire scope of the invention will become morefully apparent when considered in light of the following detaileddescription of an illustrative embodiment of the invention and from theappended claims.

The illustrative embodiment may be best understood by reference to theaccompanying drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a view in perspective of the multiple contact assembly, thefixed and movable panels being separated for convenience ofillustration;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary view taken along line 2-2 of FIGURE1; and

FIGURE 3A-D is a diagrammatic representation of the relationship betweena patchcord tip and a contact as the movable assembly panel is movedinto operative relationship with the fixed panel.

Briefly, the invention comprises an arrangement wherein the movableassembly panel is manually positioned on hangers associated with thefixed panel. The hangers are provided with spring-loaded latchingmembers for positively locating the movable panel as it rests on thehangers such that the bottom of the movable panel is in operativerelationship with respect to a cam shaft. As the cam shaft is rotated,the movable panel is displaced upwardly and inwardly toward the fixedpanel such that patchcord tips projecting from the movable panel engagesassociated paddle contacts on the fixed panel. During the initialengagement with the contacts, the cord tips rub along the contacts inone direction while forcing the resilient contacts upwardly. Therotation of the cam shaft is continued beyond the maximum rise of thecam such that the movable panel begins to move downwardly and outwardlywith respect to the fixed panel. Since the resilient contacts arepressed against their associated patchcord tips, the latter rub thecontacts in the opposite direction until cam rotation is stopped. Bythis double rubbing or wiping action, the contact and patchcord tipsurfaces are cleaned thereby insuring positive electrical connectionsbetween the cord tips and the contacts.

Now that the invention has been briefly outlined, an illustrativeembodiment thereof will be described. Referring to FIGURE 1, there isillustrated a multiple contact assembly comprising a movable panel 10and a fixed panel 12. The movable panel comprises a rectangular frame 14supporting a plurality of insulator blocks 16 having spaced apertures 18therein. Handles 20 are mounted at the opposite ends of frame 14 tofacilitate manual manipulation of the movable panel. A pair of rotatablebearing elements 22 project outwardly from each end of frame 14, theaxes of rotation of these hearings being in the plane of said frame.

The fixed panel 12 comprises a rectangular frame portion 24 whichsupports a contact assembly including a plurality of spaced contactsprojecting through insulating material 26 such that contacts areinsulated from one another. Each contact has a portion 28 extendingforwardly of insulator 26 (FIGURE 3), which portion forms a conventionalresilient paddle contact, and a rearwardly projecting portion (notshown) on the opposite side of insulator 26 to which suitable electricalcircuits may be connected, A pair of vertical support members 30 and 32are suitably joined to the ends of frame 24 and project forwardly of andbelow said frame. Each support member is provided with a pair ofrecesses intermediate the ends thereof to receive identical hangerelements 34. The structural details of the hanger elements will be described hereinafter with respect to FIGURE 2. The lower ends of supportmembers 30 and 32 are bored forwardly of frame 24 to rotatably receive ashaft 36. To facilitate rotation of shaft 36, suitable bearings may beprovided in the support members. The shaft 36 is also rotata'blysupported intermediate its ends by a suitable journal element 38attached to the bottom of frame 24. A plurality of identical camelements 40 are attached along shaft 36 for rotation therewith. The riseand fall portions of the cams 40 are positioned in alignment. A portionof shaft 36 projects through support member 30 and is attached to amember 42 whereby actuation of said member rotates the shaft and thecams 40 attached thereto. A housing 44 is attached to the outer surfaceof support member 30. Housing 44 is provided with a recess 46 forreceiving a portion of the cam actuator member 42 in its fully closedposition. A conventional spring-loaded detent 48 is provided in housing44 within the recess 46. This detent is positioned to project into acavity 50 machined in a shoulder 52 of the cam actuator 42 to lock saidactuator in its fully closed position.

Referring now to FIGURE 2, the structure of one of the identical hangerelements 34 will be described. The support member 30 is provided with arecess 54 which receives hanger 34. The hanger is secured to support 30by suitable means such as screws 56. The hanger comprises two integralportions 58 and 60, the former portion being received within recess 54while portion 60 projects beyond the support member 30 away from frame24. Portion 60 is machined at its top surface rearwardly of itsforwardrnost portion to provide a level shelf 62 thereon. The shelfprojects rearwardly into portion 58 to meet a contiguous machinedchannel 64 inclined upwardly and inwardly towards the frame 24. Theplanar surface of hanger portion 58 which abuts the support member 30 atthe bottom of recess 54 is provided with a cavity 66, which communicateswith shelf 62 and channel 64, and within which a latch element 68 ispivotally mounted. The latch element is formed at its upper surface,rearwardly of its forward tip 70, with a depression 72 havingsubstantially the same curve as bearing elements 22. A bore hole 74 isalso machined in hanger portion 58 to communicate with cavity 66. Acompression spring 76 is suitably held in bore 74- to force a plunger 78upwardly through cavity 66 to engage the underside of latch element 68thereby projecting its forward tip 70 above the level of shelf 62. Theupward projection of latch 68 is restricted by the engagement of itsupper surface rear wardly of depression 72, with the top surface ofcavity 66.

With that structure of the apparatus having been detailed, a descriptionof operation will now be set forth. In presenting this description,reference will be made to FIGURES 2 and 3AD. FIGURE 2 diagrammaticallyillustrates the positions of a bearing 22 attached to the movable panel10 as the latter is moved into operative relationship with the fixedpanel 12. Since the tips of patchcords projecting through the movablepanel 10 towards panel 12 are fixed with respect to bearings 22, FIGURES3AD diagrammatically illustrate the relative positions of a cord tip andits associated contact as the bearing 22 moves from positions A to D inFIGURE 2.

It will first be assumed that a number of patchcords are programmed withrespect to the movable panel so that their tips project towards panel 12on the opposite side of panel 10 from handles 20. To complete thecontact assembly, panel 10 is lifted by handles and is moved such thatbearings 22 rest on shelves 62 of hangers 34, as illustrated in positionA in FIGURE 2. In this position, the patchcord tips, represented by thesingle element 80, .are horizontally and vertically spaced with respectto their associated contacts 28. This is shown in FIGURE 3A.

With the cam actuator in the position shown in FIG- URE 1 wherein thefall portions of cams 40 face upwardly, the movable panel 10 is nextmanually rolled along shelves 62 towards panel 12. The forward surfacesof latch element projections 70 are inclined to permit the latch element68 to be pivoted against the force of springs 74 as bearings 22 engageprojections 70. The depression of elements 68 allows the bearings topass over the projections into depressions 72. The force of springs 74is sufiicient to return the latch elements 68 to their originalpositions wherein the bearings are cradled in the position shown at B inFIGURE 2. It should be noted here that for convenience of illustration,the cam 40 in FIGURE 2 is shown in its final position D. When thebearings are in position B, the fall portions of earns 40 face upwardlysuch that the bottom of frame 14 of panel 10 is closely spacedtherefrom. In position B, the patchcord tips 80 are positioned slightlybelow their associated contacts 28.

As the cam actuator 42 is moved from the position shown in FIGURE 1towards housing 44, shaft 36 is rotated to actuate the earns 40. Duringthe rise portion of cam movement, the cams engage the underside of panel16 to raise the bearings 22 from depressions 72 and project them intochannels 64. Due to the incline of the channels, bearings 22 are liftedupwardly and inwardly in one direction towards panel 12. This results inpatchcord tips engaging their associated contacts 28 as the tips moveupwardly and inwardly with respect to the contacts. The motion of tips80 deflects the contacts 28 against their resiliency as well as causingrelative longitudinal movement between the contacts and tips. Thus,there is a rubbing or wiping action between these two elements. Thisaction has the efifect of cleaning the elements.

In the position shown in FIGURE 3C, the contact 28 is at its maximumdeflection. This has been caused by cam 40 reaching the completion ofits rise thereby moving bearings 22 and pins 80 to their highest points,as well as to their closest relationship with panel 12. The bearingsposition can be observed in FIGURE 2 at C.

The cam actuator 42 is mounted to shaft 36 such that the actuator is notreceived in housing 44 until the cams 40 have rolled past their maximumrise portions. Consequently, as the actuation of member 42 is completed,the panel 10 resting on cams 40 moves downwardly and away from panel 12along channels 64 to a position shown at D in FIGURE 2. Thecorresponding positions of bearings 22 and cams 40 are also shown attheir final positions in FIGURE 2. It is apparent that as panel 10 movesdownwardly and away from panel 12, patchword tips 8t tend to move downand away from their contacts 28 (FIGURE 3D). However, due to theresiliency of contacts 28, the physical connections between the tips andtheir contacts are maintained and a second wiping action occurs over thepreviously wiped area due to the relative longitudinal movement betweenthe tips and the contacts. This results in an improved positiveelectrical connection free of foreign particles.

As the cam actuator 42 moves to its final position, spring detent 48 isprojected into cavity 50 of the actuator to lock the actuator. Since theearns 40 have been rolled past their maximum rise portions duringoperation, the pressure of the resilient contacts 28 on the patchcordtips 86 tends to maintain the actuator 42 in its locked position.Accordingly, improved shock and vibration performance is achieved as thepanels 10 and 12 are maintained in operative relationship.

The above-described embodiment is illustrative of a preferred embodimentof the invention but is not intended to limit the possibilities ofinsuring the features of improved positive contact and resistance tovibration or shocks. The contact assembly disclosed herein is an exampleof an arrangement in which the inventive features of this disclosure maybe utilized, and it will become apparent to one skilled in the art thatcertain modifications may be made within the spirit of the invention asdefined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A multiple contact assembly for simultaneously completing a number ofelectrical circuits through the agency of patchcords being connected toa plurality of resilient contact elements, the assembly comprising:

a first panel member to which said contact elements are fixed and asecond panel member which receives said patchcords;

a plurality of hanger elements joined to the inner side portions of saidfirst panel member and projecting therefrom, said hangers being providedwith upper surfaces extending from an area within the sides of the firstpanel member to points beyond said first panel member;

bearing members projecting from the outer side portions of said secondpanel member, said bearing members being positioned so as to permit thesecond panel member to rest on the upper surfaces of the hanger elementsand to be moved at least par- 5 tially within the area defined by thesides of the first panel member into operative relationship with acam;

means for actuating said cam to first produce relative movement betweenthe panel members in one direction to bring said patchcords intoengagement with the contact elements and to cause initial wiping of thecontact elements and then to produce relative movement between thepanels in the opposite direction to cause limited reverse wiping of thecontacts.

2. multiple contact assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein theportions of the hanger elements within the inner side portions of thefirst panel member include inclined channels adapted to receive saidbearing members when said cam is actuated to produce relative movementof the panel members, said channels thereby developing vertical andhorizontal displacement of the patchcords with respect to the contactelements.

3. A multiple contact assembly as set forth in claim 1, furthercomprising means for locking said cam actuator to maintain thepatchcords in engagement with the contacts.

4. A multiple contact assembly as set forth in claim 1, wherein saidhanger elements includes a latching arrangement for positioning thepanel on said hanger elements prior to the actuation of said cam member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,553,313 9/1925 Goff 3l7l12 XR2,927,295 3/1960 Sitz 339l8 2,975,395 3/1961 Sitz 33918 XR 3,166,3691/1965 Trump 339-18 2,111,118 3/1938 Lake 33942 2/1965 Aksu 33918 OTHERREFERENCES Electro-Technology, March 1965, p. 141.

MARVIN A. CHAPMAN, Primary Examiner. PATRICK A. CLIFFORD, AssistantExaminer.

US. Cl. X.R. 33995

